Introduction

This article serves as a tip and tricks guide to help you build out your Specialist Schedule efficiently and gain a deeper understanding on the inner workings of specialist scheduling. For more details on how to set up specialist schedules, please see our Specialist Schedules article. 

Duration vs. Interval 

The Duration is the amount of time the service will be scheduled for by default, while the Interval dictates the available booking times within a scheduled time range. This example shows a schedule set up between 8 am and 5 pm with an Interval of 30 minutes. You will also see a red box highlighting a booked service that has a 90-minute (about 1 and a half hours) Duration 

Slot-Based vs. Time-Based 

Time-based Specialists have appointments set at specific times for specific durations. 
Slot-Based Specialists have appointments based on their general workload capacity for any given date. Slot-based appointments are made for specific dates, not at specific times. 

Slot-Based Scheduling: 
Slot-based scheduling is set-up based on time units (referred to as ‘slots’), such as 15 minutes, where services require a varying number of slots:

Slots are a flexible way of setting a groomer’s capacity and booking grooming appointments according to how much work they require. This setup is created for specific dates but does not have to be set at a specific time on the specialist’s calendar. For example, a nail trim might need 1 (15 minute) slot, while a full groom for a large dog might need 10 slots.

At your business, you will determine how much time 1 slot is equal to, and how many slots are required for any service for a particular animal. Commonly, 15-minute increments are used, such that 1 slot = 15 minutes, 2 = 30 minutes, 3 = 45 minutes, and so on. Your business may determine that a slot equals 5 minutes, an hour, or even a few hours should you choose - it is totally up to you!

You will set how many slots are required for each pet for the service that’s booked when you make the appointment. You will also set the drop-off and pick-up time when creating this appointment. If the pet has not done the service before, the system will default to 1 slot. If the pet has done the service before then the system will automatically populate the number of slots that the pet was assigned the last time they booked the service.

*Of Note: You may consider creating a reference sheet for your receptionist to refer to when making and accepting appointments. This may include a chart based on breeds, weights, coat type, and/or service type that specifies the number of slots required for any given combination of factors. 

Time-Based Scheduling: 
Time-based scheduling is set-up on specific appointment times with set start and end times. This setup has a clear structure and timing, and it is easy for clients to book exact spots. Example: A grooming session scheduled from 9:00 AM to 10:30 AM

Time spots on the calendar will be determined by the interval set for the service (this is set by going to the Left-Hand Navigation: Admin » Reservation Types and Services Configuration) and the specialist's availability and will be influenced by the capacity set for that time slot. It is important to understand that many settings affect how the specialist’s schedule behaves.

Lastly, any given specialist can have a mix of time-based and slot-based appointments for different services. It is possible, for example, to book time-based haircuts while ‘a la carte’ is slot-based. It is also possible for one specialist to have a given service type as time-based while a different specialist has that same service slot-based. A single specialist can't have a particular service be both slot and time-based on their schedule.

Switching Slots for Time and Vice Versa

If you switch a service from slot-based to time-based and vice versa, previously scheduled appointments will be unaffected. A new schedule will have to be created for the updated schedule type.

Copying Shifts to Other Days Of The Week

Once the day is saved, you can click the + again to bring up the edit window. Once the window displays, you will see a double blue box icon to the right of the schedule.

You will see a pop-up window with the option to choose the days of the week to copy the schedule to:

Deleting Schedules

Deleting a Schedule only affects future bookings! If you delete a schedule after appointments have been booked, those appointments will be unaffected. They will remain at their scheduled time unless you manually reschedule, cancel, or delete them.

Setting Commission and Customer Portal Settings

To set a Commission or whether the service shows on the Customer Portal, you'll use the Manage Specialists function.

1. On the Manage Schedules page, click the Manage Specialists button on the upper right of the page.
2. On the pop up window, enter the Commission and indicate a preference for whether the Specialist should Show to Customers when booking on the customer portal. Commission should be entered as a decimal amount, equivalent to their %. Ex. 50% is entered as 50.00.
3. Save your changes.

Adjusting Commission Rates

Remember that Commission is calculated at the time of booking, not when the service is completed. If you change a commission rate for a specialist after a service has been booked, the old rate will be used. This can be adjusted within the Commission Report after the service is checked out by clicking the Pencil Icon to the left of the specialist:

FAQ's

Why aren't my time-based appointments showing as available?

There are several reasons that a time spot may not show as available:

• The specialist is fully booked for that time spot.
• From the Manage Schedules page, the time spot is not long enough for the duration of the service type. Please increase the time window to accommodate for the service length.
• There is a Facility Calendar block on that specialist's day.
• The specialist is booked for a Group Class that spans the selected time.

Please reach out to Gingr Support from the ? icon in your app banner if none of these factors apply and your appointments are still not appearing as available.

Why aren't my slot-based appointments showing as available?

The most common cause for a slot-based appointment not showing as available on the New Appointment page is due to a lack of recurring shifts. Your specialist must have at least one recurring slot shifts per week in order for any availability to show. If you already have one recurring slot shift and availability still doesn't show, please reach out to Gingr Support from the ‘?’ icon in your app banner.

How do I know if a shift is recurring or not?

Recurring shifts have an arrow loop icon indicating that they match the usual recurring schedule for that day of the week. If you make an adjustment to the time or number of slots on a schedule for a single date only, then the recurring arrow loop icon will no longer be present.

Why can't I create or edit a Specialist's schedule? Only my name appears...

In order to create or edit a specialist's schedule (and all other settings for the specialist), you must have the appropriate user permissions. Only users with the can manage group permissions user permission enabled can manage these settings. To manage the User Permissions that impact Specialists and Appointments:

1. Navigate to Left-hand Navigation: Reports & More » Groups.
2. Find the Group for whom you would like to update these permissions, and tick the box in that column for the user per permission.

How can I communicate to customers what time they should arrive for their appointment?

There are several places where you can display information for customers about their appointments. These include:

• When booking a new appointment, it will give you the option to select a drop-off and pick-up time. You can fill this out so the customers know the appointment time or you can leave it blank and it will default to 12am. If you decide to leave it blank, you can use the below options to notify customers of what time they should arrive.
• From Left-hand Navigation: Admin » Reservation Types and Services Configuration you can click to edit your service settings. You might consider updating the Description to include information about drop off and pickup times.
• Communicating with customers via email is also a great option for sharing important details about appointments. Email Custom Text can be plugged in as a variable to many email templates. You can create custom email text for both reservations and services and you can use "{reservation_type_custom_text}" and "{services_custom_text}" on many email templates where these variables are available.
• Please note that the variable "{start_date}" is for the Reservation date/time, not the appointment. When you book a slot-based appointment the reservation time will be 12am unless a specific Drop Off time has been selected when creating the appointment. You may edit this reservation time after creation, but please note that emails such as the New Appointment email will have already sent once you create the appointment. You might consider having the start date variable below other information about drop off times. For more information on emails please see our article about System Emails.
• From Left-hand Navigation: Admin » Reservation and Appointment Requests, you can enter information that will display during the customer's booking process.
  
  

What happens to my appointments if I switch a specialist's schedule between time-based and slot-based?

When you make most system and schedule changes they do not change any reservations that are already booked. You will need to edit each reservation by deleting the service and re-booking under the new system. You can use the Services by Date Report to gather a list of reservations that will need to be rescheduled. 

How can I re-enable a shift that I removed from a specialist's default schedule?

If you remove a shift on certain date on the Manage Schedules page, then you will see an orange triangle on that date. This indicates a change was made to the recurring schedule. To re-set the schedule, you can click each triangle to reenable the typical recurring schedule for that day.

Related Resources

• Specialist Schedules Reference
• Removing Specialist Shifts & Schedules Reference
• Service by Date Report Reference

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